High Notes: Skinny Puppy

January 22, 2014

Photo: Courtesy Photo

When Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor cites Skinny Puppy as an influence, one takes him at his word. Indeed, some of NIN's earliest big-time gigs were opening for the Canadian industrial-rock act that pioneered the confluence of punk, metal and electronic dance music. Led by singer Nivek Ogre (left) and keyboardist cEvin Key, the sound remains angry and intense, dense and layered and not so far removed from techno and even dubstep. Skinny Puppy released “Weapon” last year.